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Non-compliant Swan HA breaches Home Standard over fire safety issues
Housing association Swan has breached the English regulator’s Home Standard after it was found to have around 1,500 overdue fire safety remedial actions.
The 11,600-home landlord already has a non-compliant G3/V3 rating for governance and financial viability with the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) and is currently under “intensive regulatory engagement”. It is also in merger talks with 45,000-home Orbit.
In a new regulatory notice published today, the RSH said that Swan had breached the Home Standard over issues around fire safety, asbestos management and water safety.
On fire safety, Swan self-referred to the regulator in March this year, at which point the landlord had around 1,500 remedial actions overdue, the judgement said. Of these, more than half were high or medium-risk actions. At the end of last month “over 650” high and medium-risk actions were still overdue, the regulator said.
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The Essex-based landlord previously identified issues with fire safety more than two years ago and by October 2020 nearly 200 fire risk assessments were overdue, according to the regulator.
“Swan did not inform the regulator of the emerging issues with its fire safety at that time,” the notice said. “Swan has since completed the overdue fire risk assessments, although a number of remedial actions arising from them subsequently became overdue.”
On asbestos, Swan reported that more than half of its communal areas did not have an asbestos management survey in place. The association also reported it was carrying out reviews only every five years, against guidance for annual reviews of areas where asbestos was present.
In relation to water safety, Swan reported that water safety risk assessments for all relevant properties had been finished, but it did not have evidence that recommendations from assessments had been completed.
“The regulator considered the case as a breach of part 1.2 of the Home Standard and has concluded that Swan has not had an effective system in place to allow it to meet its statutory health and safety responsibilities across a range of areas,” the judgement concluded.
It said that due to the breach there was “the potential for serious detriment to the provider’s tenants”.
Susan Hickey, acting chief executive of Swan, said: “We would like to apologise to our customers for the failures in our approach which have led to the regulator’s notice issued today.
“We have put a robust improvement plan in place and are working closely with external advisors to ensure that this situation is rectified as a matter of urgency.
“Swan Housing Association’s absolute priority is to ensure our customers are safe in their homes and we will continue to engage with the regulator throughout the delivery of the improvement programme.”
Ms Hickey, the former finance chief of Peabody, was brought in as interim boss at Swan last December after its long-serving chief executive John Synnuck became ill. Mr Synnuck has now retired. Swan’s finance director resigned last December.
Elsewhere, the RSH announced today that it is investigating Christian Action (Enfield) Housing Association over its governance standards. The North London-based landlord, which operates around 1,590 homes, has been added to the regulator’s ‘gradings under review’ list.
“The outcome of the investigation will be confirmed in a regulatory judgement, once completed,” the regulator said. Christian Action (Enfield) Housing Association has been contacted for comment.
The regulator also announced today that East Suffolk Council breached the Home Standard and Rent Standard. The latter breach was a result of the council converting more than 1,000 social tenancies to affordable rent without receiving permission.
Meanwhile, the regulator also confirmed the existing G1/V1 grades of Advance Housing & Support, Arawak Walton Housing Association, English Rural Housing Association and WDH.
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